A Day In The Living
by Dreaming-Of-A-Nightmare
Summary: Jack pleads with the Man in the Moon for one day as a human. He gets more than he bargains for, but in the end, it's the best decision of his immortal life. .:. Jack/older!Jamie. Implied smut, but only heavy makeouts are described.


**A/N: Why do I do this to myself? /sighs**

**Here.**

**Have some Jack Frost/older!Jamie Bennett.**

* * *

He glances up at the moon, its phase nearly full, only missing a small sliver on one side. It beams down at him, open-faced, and he sighs and drops his gaze, tired in ways he never thought he could feel tired before.

"Please," Jack Frost pleads with the softly bright sphere, "I know this might be asking for a lot, but I only want it for a day. Okay? Sunrise to sunrise. A mere twenty-four hours. That's all I'm asking for, and if you give it to me, I'll never ask for another thing from you again, and you can take my word for that, because I will never forget that you would have done this one thing for me."

It's a weak bargain, but Jack doesn't have much to offer. There is only so much he can give, only so much he can promise. Everything else is out of his league, and he's powerless against it.

"Because you can do it, can't you?" Jack asks as he once more peers up at the night sky, starry and bright and perfectly cloudless. "I know you can! You were able to turn my human body into the spirit one I have now, so why can't you reverse it for just one day? I know it might take a lot of power, but I'll make it up to you in the centuries to come! I just… I need this, okay? I need one day as a human, one day with hot blood instead of cold blood, one day as a being of brown hair and pink skin, seen by all but ignored by most because I'm just another face. After that, I will gladly be my Guardian self for the rest of my supernatural life! I swear. I only want a day, Manny. Only a day."

The Man in the Moon seems to regard Jack's pleas carefully. Nary a star twinkles or a breeze blows as everything grows still, the orb considering his request.

Then, with a flurry of snowflakes and fallen leaves, Jack is swept up into the air, a strong beam of moonlight highlighting every feature of Jack's lithe form, and he is spun in the wind until he's dizzy and rendered unconscious.

* * *

When he wakes, he feels cold.

He shivers and clutches at himself, wrapping his hoodie tighter around himself. His legs feel heavy and stiff with jeans, and there are shoes on his feet. He stumbles as he stands, no long feeling as lightweight as he used to, and there isn't a scrap of frost on his clothes; snow melts after a while. He touches his skin, and it feels warm.

Jack's grin is bursting his lips at the seams, and he shouts in glee and does a small leap into the air. He laughs giddily to himself as he kicks at things in his sneakers and shivers again, hiding his hands in his pocket for warmth.

He races over to the edge of the pond and checks his reflection. Brown hair, brown eyes. Peachy freckles, pink cheeks and nose and ears, puffs of steamy-hot hair from his mouth. Manny really did it. He's human.

Jack hasn't been human in three hundred years, but, finally, he can feel his beating heart pumping fast in his chest, and he feels _hungry _and like he could probably use a bathroom break, and it's _amazing._

He can't wait to go to Burgess High and say hello to some of the students there, especially one in particular.

But first, he needs to take care of his renewed body.

* * *

He lacks all of his powers, but when the wind blows someone's five-dollar bill from their pocket without their noticing and it happens to land near Jack's feet, Jack doesn't complain. He doesn't even see who it belongs to, so he can't return it, and it's only enough for a little bit of cheap food from a street vendor and something warm to drink, and that's all he needs. He will only be this way for a day, anyhow, so it's not like he will need much more.

The former winter spirit casual makes his way down the street to the high school, idly finishing off his small meal and tossing it into a trash bin on the school grounds. He slips his hands back into his pockets and ignores the chill as he glances with a smile up at the building. It's only the morning, and everyone is still in class, but upperclassmen are permitted outside for their lunch periods if they so please, and that isn't too far away. He'll see some of them soon enough; after all, the first hour is at ten-thirty, the second lunch hour at eleven-thirty, and the final one at twelve-thirty.

He knows, of course, because he pays attention. He's been paying attention for years now, as he's watched Jamie Bennett grow up.

Jamie was the first child to believe in him, and is the only teenager to carry it on that belief after childhood. By now, even Cupcake has dismissed the night the Guardians revealed themselves as part of her imaginative childhood; but Jamie hasn't. He still believes in all of the Guardians, but he's friends with Jack Frost, and that's something else entirely.

Jack always returned to Burgess after spreading winter around the globe because it's his place of origin, but after getting to really know Jamie, after having Jamie see and hear him for the first time, Jack started to have a new reason for coming home.

"There you are, kiddo," he smiles. Jamie has the first of the three lunch hours, and after some loitering, waiting for him has paid off. He sees the teen's hair first, then gets a good look at his face, and it's definitely Jamie, and already butterflies are springing up in Jack's stomach.

Jamie is a senior in high school now, age seventeen; the same as Jack. A surge of happiness courses down Jack's body as he slips into the crowd rushing outside for lunch, and makes his way through it to watch Jamie laugh at something with his friends. It feels so good to be equals, finally, after so much time.

Jack notices a little patch of ice where a muddy puddle once was, and he decides to accidentally push Jamie to step onto it.

"Whoa!" Jamie skids on the ice, but Jack is _conveniently _right there to stabilize him again.

"Hey, you okay?" Jack asks with a bright smile, and Jamie turns to look at him, blinking owlishly for a moment, then composing his face again.

"Um, yeah. Who… who are you? I've never seen you around here before," Jamie frowns, brushing Jack off and standing up straight. He's slightly taller than Jack, and he grew into his face well. "But… you look kind of familiar. What's your name?"

"I'm a new student here. Name's Jack," he introduces himself, smirking, and Jamie eyes him oddly for a moment before smiling as well, taking Jack's hand and shaking it.

"I have a childhood friend with that name," Jamie remarks. "Uh… do you want to sit with me and my friends for lunch?" he asks.

"I'd love to," Jack replies easily, and Jamie keeps sending him odd glances before they take their seats. Jamie introduces Jack to his little group, and much of them are the same kids Jack has watched Jamie grow up with, but a few are missing, and one or two of them are new.

Jack politely greets and nods and smiles at each kid, and for a while, he doesn't say anything. He merely sits with the group on the outside table and listens to them converse, eating and swapping stories. Jamie tries to include him in on it, but Jack shakes his head. He's just happy to be here, although he doesn't say so.

"So, where'd you move here from, Jack?" one girl at the table asks, and she's batting her eyelashes at him; flirting.

"Florida," he says, choosing the last place he could possibly be from.

"Really? You're not very tan…" the girl replies, wrinkling her nose.

"Man, there's no snow down there. Are winters weird?" another boy remarks.

"It gets pretty cold at night sometimes, enough to see your breath and frost the dew on the grass. It gets about as bad there in the winter as it does on mild autumn days here," Jack shrugs. He's tried to make it worse, but he never was able to; it's too close to the equator, he supposes. That doesn't stop him from trying to visit there, though. And some mornings at the bus stops in Florida, he was at least able to be acknowledged by some of the kids. "And not everyone in Florida is tan, you know. Some people don't go outside as much, despite the weather."

"What, do you sit inside at home playing video games instead?" one of Jamie's friends laughs. "Because that's what I'd do. Man, fuck 'nice weather.' _Skyrim_ is more fun."

Jack honestly isn't sure what Skyrim is – a video game, perhaps, but he doesn't pay attention to what the kids are into these days, only that they are having fun – but he nods anyway, and replies, "Exactly!" to show his enthusiasm.

They chat for a while more, and just as lunch is ending, Jamie mentions, "Oh, and don't forget, guys: my little sister is going to sleep over at her friend's house tonight, so I'm having you all over for a while! You can spend the night if you want; well, not the girls, sorry. My mom isn't okay with co-ed sleepovers, sorry."

"Aw, that takes the fun out of everything," the flirtatious girl in the group replies with a pout, then she laughs. "Nah, it's okay. I actually can't come, anyway; Lisa and I have drama club. You boys have fun." And she gets up, pats them all on the shoulders – even Jack, and her touches lingers a bit more on his – and heads back into the building for class.

"Um, did you want to come over, Jack? I know we just met, but I feel bad excluding you. Plus, you seem to fit in with us all right; like you've always kinda been here," Jamie says, and his tone is lighthearted, but it still makes Jack fidget.

"Uh, yeah, sure! Sounds like fun," he returns as calmly as possible. Inside, eagerness bubbles up in his chest. "My parents won't mind," he lies.

"Great! You can ride home with me, then, if that's cool. Unless you have a car and want to follow me instead?"

"Nah, I don't have a car. I'll just ride with you. It's cool with me. Thanks for inviting me, man," he grins.

"Sure, no sweat. See you later," and Jamie gets up, and within moments, he's inside the building and walking to class, and Jack Frost slips off the campus to play around in town for a bit, until two-thirty rolls around, and he can return to get this ride back to Jamie's house.

* * *

As it turns out, no one but Jack is able to spend the night. And that makes the first few hours of the get-together energetic and wild and wonderful, but after the last boy leaves, it's down to Jack and Jamie, left to themselves, and Jack isn't entirely sure how to go about this. He wants to say something; he wants to tell Jamie who he actually is, but he isn't sure Jamie will believe him without his powers to prove it, nor is he sure how to explain the magic at work.

Jamie shuts off the DVD player at their movie ends, the one he had been playing for the rest of his guests, even if they couldn't stay to finish it. He pops it back into its case and turns to look at Jack. "So, mystery guy. What do you want to do now?"

Jack's gaze flickers up to Jamie's face, and for a split second, he only looks at the boy's lips. Then he shrugs and glances away, acting aloof. "Play a game?" he suggests.

"Sure, which one? I have all of the _Halo_ games, and –"

"Not a video game. I'm actually not very good at those. I was thinking something classic, you know? Like a word-game. Would You Rather, or Truth or Dare, or something."

Jamie laughs. "Kinda preteen-girl of you, but okay, sure. What did you have in mind? Because dares can get kind of hairy."

"A game of truths, then?" Jack suggests with a smirk. "And I'll go first. Truth: I'm not from Florida. I'm actually from around here."

"Oh?" Jamie inquires with a raised brow. "Okay. Well, truth is, I figured you were lying. Even if you stayed inside most of the time, you're going to wind up getting a slight tan at one point because your parents would force you outside. At least mine would. Plus, swimming. That's like the main part of Florida is the water everywhere, so you would have gotten a tan if you swam at all."

Jack chuckles meekly. "Yeah, you have a point there. Okay, your turn."

"Truth: the most I've gotten to know you tonight, the more and more you remind me of a friend of mine, and it's kind of weirding me out."

"Oh. Sorry."

"No, it's fine!" Jamie laughs. He eyes Jack suspiciously again for a moment, then shrugs it off and continues, "It's just trippy, that's all. Anyway, it's your turn."

"All right. Um. Truth: I've done some stupid stuff in my life just to get close to someone I have a crush on."

"I think we've all done that," Jamie flushes minutely. "Some of us… like me… have done some really embarrassingly stupid things to do the same. But that's part of growing up, right?"

"Haha, I guess so," Jack leans back and brings up his leg to rest over the other. "Your turn, Jamie."

"Oh, right. Uh… I'm in love with someone right now, actually, while we're on the topic of it."

"Really? Who?" Jack asks, his heart suddenly thudding in his chest.

"No one you would know, new kid," Jamie retorts. "But… I did mention him already. My childhood friend, Jack. I… I've liked him for years, but lately, I dunno, it's stronger. Uh… it doesn't creep you out that I'm gay, does it?"

"No, not at all…" Jack whispers. He's a little frozen in shock; Jamie loves him. He wasn't sure, he has his suspicions of Jamie's possible feelings, but he was too unsure and insecure to be positive. But it's true; Jamie does return his feelings, and a swarm of joy and relief flushes his skin. "So, you… you love this guy? Like, for real? What would you do if… I mean, you two are friends, right? Why not tell him? He might return your feelings. You never know until you go for it."

"I'm not sure I want to take the risk," Jamie mumbles. "Plus, like… he and I are kind of different. It wouldn't work out, not for very long. And I think he only sees me as some kid, so he probably doesn't return my feelings at all. But that's fine, you know; I'm content just being near him when I can be. He's… a lot of fun," and he smiles softly at that, and Jack's face echoes the expression.

He clears his throat and looks at Jamie sincerely. "My turn," he breathes. "Truth: my full name? Yeah, um. It's Jack _Frost_."

Jamie gapes at him for a second, then turns a deep red and sputters, "I-I knew it! Well, actually, I didn't, I had my doubts, especially after a while, but, like… you look and sound too much like him _not_ to be him! Shit, and I just told you –" He cuts himself off, hiding his face in his hands and shaking his head. When he regroups enough to speak again, he remarks, "But I don't get it… Why do you look like this? Your hair isn't snow-white, your eyes aren't icy-blue… And…" He reaches out and touches Jack's forearm, his hoodie discarded beside him, t-shirt sleeves exposing his arms. "Yeah. You're not cold, either. You're… well, _human,_ like me. How did that even _happen_?"

"I asked for a favor from a friend who has a lot of power. This is my old body; the human one I used to have before…" He swallows. He has to muster up a bit of courage to go on to clarify, "Before I died."

"…No way," Jamie gasps, blinking, his tone soft. "You were human once? That's…" He drifts off, nibbles his bottom lip. "Um, if you don't mind my asking… H-how did you die? And don't tell me you died this young, only a teenager…"

Jack scoffs and sits up again, dropping his hands into his lap. "Yeah, I was this young. I drowned. Here, in Burgess, at the pond. I saved my little sister from some thin ice. I was stupid and reckless and thought it would be fine, she and I could do some ice-skating, have a little late-winter fun. But it was March, and I should have known it wouldn't be stable enough in the high sun like that. But it's no big deal, I mean… I became Jack Frost that night, and after many years, I met you. So I don't mind." He forces a smile and adds with more cheer in his tone, "And, look: I'm human again for the day, and that's all I wanted. Just to be closer to you for a little while. So it's not all bad, right?"

"Jack…" Jamie utters quietly, and he's already leaning in and taking Jack's face between his hands, and Jack smiles a bit sadly and warmly at the same time, and he closes his eyes and lets Jamie kiss him. He feels like he's been waiting for this moment for years.

He kisses back tenderly and touches his hands to Jamie's jaw and neck and hair, weaving between the strands and opening his mouth to kiss more heatedly.

When Jamie breaks the kiss to breathe, he whispers, "I don't know what you did, but I'm glad. You did this just for me?"

"Yeah. I wanted to be able to touch you without you flinching and shivering at the cold. For once, I wanted to be on the same plane as you. Seen by other people, but still a nobody to everyone except you. It seemed like a good idea at the time," Jack answers genuinely. He takes one of Jamie's hands into both of his own and feels out the knuckles and tendons and veins, Jamie's heightened pulse at Jack's warm fingertips.

"It was a great idea. I only worry what you gave up in order to have this chance," Jamie frowns with concern.

Jack shrugs it off. "Only that this is a one-time deal and it will wear off by sunrise, and I can never ask for anything else again. But, like, what do I need another chance for? One day at your level is good enough for me. I could never ask for anything more." And he smiles reassuringly, free hand coming up to cup Jamie's handsome face while the other squeezes his hand gently. "Now, if you don't mind, I think kissing you again sounds like another brilliant idea."

"I agree. You're just full of great ideas today," Jamie replies, no longer feeling like he's in a stranger's presence, he leans over in his beanbag chair against the foot of his bed and plants a hand on Jack's own beanbag to balance himself. Then their mouths are connected once more, and Jack sighs a would-be moan because finally, finally he can do this, have this contact with Jamie, and know that his feelings aren't one-sided and be unafraid to touch the other boy because he isn't too chill to handle.

"I just worry," Jack mutters in between kisses, "What will happen once I'm essentially an elemental again. I… I've never had more-than-platonic feelings for anyone, Jamie. You're the first person who believed in me, and the child I guarded the most. And somewhere along the way, I fell in love with you, and I just wanted…"

"Jack, you're rambling," Jamie says, distracted from their lip movements as jack mumbles against his skin and sounds like he's on the verge of tears. "It's okay. Okay? I don't care. I'll see you when I see you. And I can handle the cold, all right? You're skilled with controlling your powers, and I've touched you before. You're not too cold; maybe fifty-something degrees. I can handle it, I swear. But for now, we have tonight. We can make the most of it, if you want."

"Works for me," Jack whispers, and then he's kissing Jamie with newfound fervor, his doubts quelled and his blood boiling pleasantly. Jamie climbs over into Jack's chair and fits into his lap, wrapping his arms around Jack's shoulders and leaning down to kiss him once more, head angles to the side.

Jack scales his hands along Jamie's torso and down to slide into Jamie's back jeans pockets, Jamie humming approvingly into Jack's mouth.

It carries on that way for quite some time, Jack's hands discovering and mapping out the entire expanse of Jamie's skin after they yanks their shifts off over their heads and shift up to lie on the bed, hands seeking skin and mouths doing the same, Jack nipping at Jamie's bottom lip and ear lobe and collarbone, Jamie sucking Jack's throat and down his chest, hungry to have every piece of Jack Frost that he can before it's too late, and he never has the chance again.

Jack rolls them over and pins Jamie's hands, and leans down to lightly flick his tongue over a nipple and slide his body down Jamie's, releasing the other teen's wrists to free up his hands to undo Jamie's fly. He's kissing down Jamie's navel and whispering things like, "You're gorgeous," and "I want you so much," and "I love you," under his breath. Jamie's own breath hitches in his throat and he closes his eyes, hand tangled in Jack's brunet locks and the other thumbing over a freckled shoulder as he feels his stomach lurch with arousal, Jack's mouth headed further and further south, gaining ground in race to Jamie's clothed erection.

Suddenly, there's a knock at the door. "Jamie?" comes his mother's voice, "I just got home. Do you have a friend over? I noticed an extra pair of shoes by the door."

"Shit, shit, shit," Jamie sputters, hastily zipping up his pants and scrambling off the edge of the bed to find his shirt. Jack panics and reaches for his hoodie, sliding it over his head and kicking his shirt under the bed as he hides his mussed hair in his hood and drops down into a beanbag chair, turning on the television and selecting a channel at random. "Um, yeah, mom, I do. Come in," Jamie calls out, and he crosses his legs to hide his arousal, and Jake does the same, tugging his hoodie pocket lower over his lap.

"Oh!" Jamie's mother says in surprise, smiling at Jack. "I don't believe I've met you. Hi, I'm Jamie's mom."

"Hello, Mrs. Bennett," Jack says sheepishly. "I'm, um, Jack."

"Hello, Jack," she says with a chuckle. "My, Jamie, I like him. He actually calls me Mrs. Bennett, and answers me when I talk to him. Not as rude as your other new friends." She shakes her head. "What're you watching?"

"Oh, nothing much. We just finished a movie," Jamie remarks, and he prays his room doesn't smell stuffy and she can't see the bit of sweat that started to collect under his bangs. "We're thinking about playing a video game soon or something. Jack's spending the night, by the way."

"Oh, that's fine. I'll just be downstairs, catching up on my novel. I'll see you boys later. Have fun; oh, and don't be afraid to grab any snacks you like! I brought hope some ice cream," she replies, and just like that, she leaves the room, shutting the door behind her.

Jack and Jamie release simultaneous sighs of relief. "She didn't notice anything. I'm not super good with adults, but she didn't seem like she suspected a thing at all."

"I dunno, man. She's a _mom._ She knows more than she lets on," Jamie worries, chewing on his cuticles.

Jack reaches over and takes Jamie's fingers from his mouth. "Calm down, it'll be all right. She really didn't notice, trust me. But, um. Does this mean you don't want to…?"

"Hell no," Jamie giggles a nervous laugh. "I do want to. We'll just… have to lock my door and turn on a movie kind of loud, that's all. If you're game, that is."

"Oh, I'm _always _game. I'm Jack Frost; games are my specialty."

Jamie snorts and picks up Jack's shirt from under the bed, tossing it onto Jack's face. "You're so cheesy."

"Made you laugh, didn't it?"

"I don't want to laugh, though. I want to make out with you," Jamie retorts, blushing and trying to match Jack's level of easygoing nature.

"Then by all means, let's resume," Jack grins wolfishly, and he grabs hold of Jamie's hand and hauls him to his feet, gripping him by the shirtfront and kissing him, turning and stumbling to fall back onto Jamie's bed. They discard their shirts again, easier this time, and in a less-rushed manner, Jack takes his precious time undressing Jamie fully and pressing their nude bodies together, rocking shallowly and kissing languidly while his hands never tire of touching Jamie's skin and sharing warmth.

They don't go to sleep until late in the night, and when Jack wakes in the morning, he's atop the sheets while Jamie is under them, sound asleep, warm, curled on his side facing Jack. And Jack is blue and cold and white-haired again, but he doesn't mind. He finds his clothes – returned to their familiar frosty state – and gets dressed in them. He locates his staff, perched somehow on Jamie's windowsill, and he takes it into his hands after opening the window to retrieve it.

He glances back at his lover's sleeping form and sighs, but he doesn't regret a second of it. They made love for a night and that's all Jack wanted, really; to know he could love and be loved in return, and to share in the physicality of a human at least once.

He glides over to Jamie's side of the bed and bends down, pecking a cool kiss on the boy's nose.

Jamie's eyes flutter open and he rolls onto his back, just able to catch Jack leaving through the window. "Jack!" he calls out in a hoarse croak, his voice rough with sleep. He sleepily tumbles out of bed and clumsily hobbles out of his tangled sheets to Jack, and the winter spirit catches Jamie and keeps him standing as he looks into his worried eyes.

"It's all right, I'll be back. You mom can't see me anyway, so it would be pointless to try having breakfast with you and her, right? So just… tell her your friend had somewhere to be in the morning, and left early."

"Okay, but… when will I see you again?" Jamie breathes, shivering from the breeze through his open window, and the coolness of Jack's touch on his forearms, goosebumps rising on sleep-warmed flesh.

Jack sighs through his nose and shrugs. "I don't know. Soon, though. Maybe tomorrow, even. I have more reason to visit you, now. But… are you sure you want to try this? I just want you to be happy, Jamie."

"I'm happiest with you," Jamie whispers, and he grips Jack's arms tightly and leans up for a kiss, and Jack's gaze softens. He caves in, touching back down onto Jamie's floor, lowering his foot from the window ledge. He returns the kiss and tries his hardest to retract any of his frosting powers from his lips and fingertips. It must work, because while the kiss is still much shorter than their kisses the previous night, Jamie lasts longer than Jack would have thought. "Goodbye," the human pants.

Jack grins broadly and ruffles Jamie's hair. "Goodbye. But before I go, there's just one thing I've been wondering about…"

"Oh no," Jamie says with a winded chuckle, "You have that mischievous tone. What is it?"

"…What sort of embarrassing stuff did you try in order to feel close to me?"

"Truth? Sometimes I would kiss one of my ice cubes before putting it in my drink in the summer, or I would press my half-naked body to my window in the autumn and winter to see if I could handle the cold on my skin. Half of the time it actually felt really nice, because half of the time, I feel too hot anyway. But yeah, um… I would always picture it was you." Jamie mumbles, glancing down. He sighs when his confession is over with, and then glances up again.

Jack's smiling, and there is a bluish tint on his cheeks. "Trust me, it's not as bad as pleading with the moon," is all Jack says in reply, and it's confusing, but he plants a small kiss on Jamie's forehead before disappearing out the open window, swept up in the careless and free wind.

Jamie smiles and waves at the sky, then shuts his window and crawls back into bed to sleep in until at least noon, dreams of snowflake patterns and cool kisses fresh in his mind's eye.


End file.
